Language(s): Swedish, German
Research/Language Interests: 19th Century Scandinavian Literature; Modernism in Swedish Literature; Historical Fiction; August Strindberg; Karen Blixen; Pär Lagerkvist; Verner von Heidenstam; Literary Decadence; Feminism.
About: Susan Brantly joined the Department of Scandinavian Studies in 1987 and retired from the Department of German, Nordic, and Slavic+ in 2025. Her research interests include 19th Century Scandinavian Literature and Art, Modernism and Postmodernism in Swedish Literature, Historical Fiction, August Strindberg, Karen Blixen (Isak Dinesen), Pär Lagerkvist, Verner von Heidenstam, Literary Decadence and Feminism. In 2003, Professor Brantly was the recipient of the Chancellor’s Distinguished Teaching Award and she received the U.W. System Alliant Underkofler Excellence in Teaching Award in 2013. She was the Director of Bradley Learning Community from 2007 to 2025 and the editor of the journal Scandinavian Studies from 2012 to 2023.
Education:
• Yale University, PhD in Germanic Languages and Literatures (1987)
• University of Minnesota, MA in Scandinavian Studies (1983)
• Harvard University, BA in German and Scandinavian (1980)